CVI Accepts, published online ahead of print on 4 March 2009

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Herrmann-Hoesing, L. M. Articles by Knowles, D. P. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Herrmann-Hoesing, L. M. Articles by Knowles, D. P.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Clin. Vaccine Immunol. doi:10.1128/CVI.00459-08
Copyright (c) 2009, American Society for Microbiology and/or the Listed Authors/Institutions. All Rights Reserved.

Peripheral ovine progressive pneumonia (OPP) provirus levels correlate with and predict histological tissue lesion severity in naturally infected sheep

Lynn M. Herrmann-Hoesing^*, Susan M. Noh, Stephen N. White, Kevin R. Snekvik, Thomas Truscott, and Donald P. Knowles

Animal Disease Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Pullman, WA 99164-6630; Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7040; Center for Integrated Biotechnology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Studies were undertaken to determine whether serum anti-ovine progressive pneumonia virus (OPPV) antibody responses or peripheral blood OPP provirus levels associate with the degree of histologically measured tissue lesions in naturally OPPV infected sheep. Sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded and eosin and hemotoxylin stained lung, mammary gland, carpal synovial membrane and brain were evaluated for lesion severity from 11 OPPV infected ewes (mean age of 8.6 years) and 5 OPPV uninfected ewes (mean age of 6 years). OPP provirus levels and anti-OPPV antibody titers were measured in peripheral blood and serum, respectively, at euthanasia and 3 years prior to euthanasia. Both mean peripheral OPP provirus levels and mean serum anti-surface envelope glycoprotein (SU) antibody titers at euthanasia were significantly higher in ewes moderate to severe histological lesions than in ewes as showing no to mild histological lesions. However, although mean peripheral OPP provirus levels at euthanasia and 3 years prior to euthanasia significantly correlated with the highest histological lesion score in any affected tissue (2-tailed P values=0.03, 0.02), mean serum anti-SU antibody titers, anti-capsid (CA) antibody titers, or anti-transmembrane 90 (TM90) antibody titers at euthanasia did not show a significant correlation with the highest histological lesion score in any tissue (2-tailed P values=0.32, 0.97, 0.18, respectively). These data are the first to show that OPP provirus levels predict and correlate with the extent of OPPV related histological lesions in various OPPV affected tissues. These findings suggest that peripheral OPP provirus levels quantitatively contribute more to the development of histological lesions than the systemic anti-SU antibody host immune response.